826CHI is a Chicago non-profit that teaches creative writing skills to kids and helps teachers inspire their students to write.

One of their fantastic fundraising strategies: They turned their storefront school into The Boring Store: No Longer Supplying Anything of Utility. Everyone in the neighborhood knows who they are and what they do. People stop on the street to take pictures. (Click the photo for a close-up.)

How many small retailers can say the same?

If people aren’t stopping in their tracks in front of your door, you’re missing the point. Close your store and start a direct mail business.

The whole reason you’re paying rent is to get people to come in and buy. Do whatever it takes to not be a boring store.

Email to a friend:

Comments

Interesting… I just visited a sister store – 826 Valencia in San Francisco last week. It’s a pirate store. They also have a superhero store in Brooklyn and several other interesting ones around the country all with the same concept and same charity.

I taught word of mouth marketing at Northwestern University and internet entrepreneurship at the Wharton School of Business. I’m a serial entrepreneur who founded and advises startups and nonprofits. And I’m a rabid purist on the topic of marketing ethics.

About This Blog

"Damn, I Wish I'd Thought of That!" is full of unusually useful ideas borrowed from the smartest marketers. Good marketing is more about brains than bucks. The best business ideas are easy to do, inexpensive, simple, and fun. Learn to simplify your business, earn word of mouth, and thrill your customers.

Subscribe to Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That! for a weekly email full of unusually useful ideas for smart marketers. Great marketing is about brains, not bucks. The best business ideas are easy to do, inexpensive, and fun. Learn to simplify your business, earn word of mouth, and thrill your customers: